Did Passage of No Child Left Behind Reduce Arts Programs in Public Secondary Schools?

• In Event: 25.082 - Fairmont Royal York Roundtable Session Three
  In Roundtable Session: 25.082-2 - The Effects of Accountability

Abstract

There has been widespread debate about the impact of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) of 2002 on the availability of visual and performing arts programs in public schools. To determine the impact of NCLB on public secondary schools, this study analyzed five waves of data from the NCES Schools and Staffing Survey. The analyses indicated that the NCLB accountability systems were not associated with long-term changes in the number of visual and performing arts educators working in public secondary schools after implementation of NCLB in 2002. Yet, there was a change in the distribution of arts educators. Also, where arts programs were available, access to the arts was most prevalent for students enrolled in smaller public secondary schools.

Author

• Taylor Gara, University of California - Irvine